ENGL 549
AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE

Catalog Entry

English 549: African American Literature
Three hours lecture (3).

Familiarizes students with the literature written by African Americans. Scope includes all genres and periods. Enables students to understand African American literature both in itself and within the larger context of American literature and culture. Approved for Graduate Credit: appropriate requirements for students taking this course for graduate credit will be established by the instructor.

Detailed Description of Content of Course

I. Close reading of texts considered seminal, pivotal, and/or central to the literary tradition of African Americans.
II. Attention to historical/cultural contexts including African origins (i.e. folklore, philosophy), and past and current political/social forces.
III. May also include selected readings in criticism, including but not confined to African American scholars and critics.

Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

I. Students read selected texts of fiction, poetry, drama, letters, narratives sometimes supplemented by an anthology.
II. Format--combination of the following: Lecture and discussion led by instructor; student led discussion of assigned readings; oral reports by students on assigned readings and outside sources; peer group or workshop activities.
III. Writing Requirements

I. Informal and exploratory journals, reading logs, etc. in which students record their responses. Students are encouraged to use their responses to initiate classroom discussion, or to respond to ideas raised in class.
2. Critique

Students may be asked to write short critical papers analyzing a scholarly article incorporating one or more of the fictional works studied. These papers should explain the scholar's point of view clearly and may support or attack that point of view.

3. Formal Essays

Students may be required to write one or more formal essays. These might focus on the development of some motif, idea, or image in black literature. Alternatively, the essay might focus on a single author in a thorough analysis of the writer's art. Students might consider that writer's relationship to other African American writers, to the historical development of the literature, or some other question or problem.

Goals and Objectives of the Course

A central goal of this course is to make students knowledgeable about the development of the literature of African Americans, including its cultural/political foundations as well as its structures, symbols, images, and assumptions. Additional goals include providing students with the means to appreciate some of the sublety and distinctiveness of the art of African Americans and enabling students to place the writings of African Americans within their broader study of World and American literatures.

Assessment Measures

Students' understanding of the relationship of literature to history and society, and their ability to respond analytically to a text may be assessed in a variety of ways including, but not necessarily limited to, the following: informal writing, both in class and out of class; classroom presentations; and examinations. Students' ability to present their ideas clearly and competently in writing that suggests meaningful contexts for their interpretations of literature can be assessed through more formal essays and revisions, including, where appropriate, researched papers.

Other Course Information

None

REVIEW AND APPROVAL

DATE ACTION APPROVED BY
March 1999